Russian Oil Magnate Found Dead as Spate of Mysterious Deaths Continues

The head of one of Russia's largest oil companies has died, Russian state media reported on Tuesday, marking the latest in a string of deaths among the country's top oil executives.

Vladimir Nekrasov, the head of the board of directors at Lukoil, died after what initial medical reports suggest was "acute heart failure," state-run news agency Tass reported on Tuesday, citing the company. He spent almost 50 years in the oil and gas industry, Russian media reported.

Newsweek reached out to Lukoil for comment via email.

He is the third of Lukoil's senior executives to die since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine 20 months ago. In September 2022, Lukoil chairman Ravil Maganov died after reportedly falling from a window in a Moscow hospital. However, the oil company said Maganov had "passed away following a severe illness."

Maganov "made an invaluable contribution not only to the development of the company but to the entire Russian oil and gas industry," Lukoil said at the time.

Alexander Subbotin, a former top manager at Lukoil, was discovered dead in the home of a shaman in May 2022 in Mytishchi, to the northeast of Moscow. His body was found in a basement in a "room used for Jamaican voodoo rituals," Tass reported at the time.

Lukoil called for a swift end to the war in Ukraine shortly after the Kremlin launched its invasion in February 2022. The company, which produces around 2 percent of the world's oil supply, said it hoped for the "immediate cessation of the armed conflict," backing a diplomatic resolution to the war.

And it's not just the oil business. Within months of the outbreak of all-out war in Ukraine, attention had turned to the number of Russian oligarchs, officials and tycoons who had met uncomfortable or unexpected ends.

Sergey Protosenya, a former manager of Russian energy giant Novatek, was discovered hanged on the grounds of his property in the Spanish town of Lloret de Mar in April 2022, with his wife and daughter found with stab wounds in the building. Novatek said it extended its "deepest sympathies to all those affected by this tragic situation."

Vladislav Avayev, who was a former vice president of the private Russian bank Gazprombank, was also found dead in April 2022 with his wife and daughter in Moscow.

Update 10/24/23, 10:11 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.